Pacific Rim 2: Deus Est Machina
by pimpmeisterg
Summary: When strange new Kaiju threaten to overrun humanity, it's up to Raleigh and Mako and a few good friends to lead America (and the world) to victory in the face of oblivion. As they travel across a world at war, can they hold together a people that seem to be falling to pieces already? More importantly, can they improvise their way into preventing the global annihilation of mankind?
1. Chapter 1: America Delenda Est

PACIFIC RIM 2

2032

8 YEARS AFTER THE FIRST KAIJU WAR

The white house, seen from above. CUT to inside the Oval Office, where RALEIGH BECKET, hero of the Kaiju War, stands over his desk.

RALEIGH: Okay, are you the one with the United Nations memo, because it was supposed to be here an hour ago.

INTERN: (_nervously) _Their office hasn't replied to um, my emails, I asked them to fax it. i'm really sorry I'll make sure it won't happen again.

RALIEGH: Hey, _(looks at his nametag) _Jacob, you wouldn't' be here if you didn't know what you were doing. Don't apologize. Just let me know when you get it, okay?

INTERN: Sorry, Mr. President. (_he realizes he apologized again and quickly leaves)_

_RALEIGH sits down and leans back in his chair, his untucked shirt revealing part of RALEIGH'S ABS, still awesome eight years later. Vice President MAKO MORI enters, because that native-born citizen law isn't a thing anymore. She walks past the Secret Service guys, both of whom have Kaiju tattoos. The camera lingers on RALEIGH'S ABS. _

MAKO: Hey, so the Atlantic Navy's apparently having some refueling difficulties with the Mozambiquan government.

RALEIGH: So who's supporting the troops in Yemen?

MAKO: No one, the troops are down to eating MREs. _(One of the Secret Service guys makes a face)_ Major General Hui says they're doing everything they can to negotiate.

RALIEGH: Ergh. What do they want?

MAKO: They want us to shut down the New Jaeger program.

RALEIGH: What new Jaeger program?

_(fire alarm sounds, automated voice plays) _Keep calm. Please evacuate in an orderly fashion. This is not a drill. Keep calm.

MAKO: The military wants the most powerful weapons available. It's totally a secret project, but shouldn't you know about this?

_(Outside, White House employees are evacuating in an orderly fashion, with armed men standing about looking important.)_

RALEIGH: Yeah, I probably should. What's going on?

MAKO: I think there's been a fire.

The armed men suddenly begin to fire upon the White House staff as they exit. They trample each other to escape the slaughter and get back inside the White House. Several security agents can be seen firing back before they're quickly overwhelmed.

Secret Serviceman 1: No ma'am. This is a terrorist attack!

Secret Serviceman 2: Get down, Mr. President! _(SS2 slams closed the door to the Oval Office, while SS1 (WILLIAMS) leads MAKO and RALEIGH out through the back exit, where two security agents (SS3, SS4) are in a shootout with dozens of terrorists.)_

SS3: Williams! Take them to the back exit, we'll hold them off as long as we can!

WILLIAMS: Yes, sir.

(WILLIAMS salutes them_ as MAKO and RALEIGH open the door and SS1 runs outside. INTERN runs in.)_

INTERN: Everyone's dying out there!

WILLIAMS: You're safest with us, kid.

_(WILLIAMS runs outside, shooting a terrorist coming round a corner. They fight their way through the building. MAKO and RALEIGH look uncomfortable not helping)_

MAKO: When's the military showing up?

WILLIAMS: _(as SS1 gets hit and collapses in the background) _Our radios and phones are malfunctioning but the military should be here shortly!

_(RALEIGH picks up SS1's pistol, while MAKO has drawn a small, single-shot pistol from her purse. They come to an emergency exit leading underground. It says "Emergency Bunker" on it)_

INTERN: Isn't there another way back to the surface from the white house bunker?

_(They try to move towards it, but six more terrorists come out)_

WILLIAMS: Nope!

_(The six terrorists rapidly overwhelm the party, killing WILLIAMS. MAKO, RALEIGH, and INTERN flee through a hallway, one more Secret Serviceman dying to the side, and scramble over a couch with two dead Secret Servicemen behind it. They get behind this barricade, at which point INTERN is seen behind them to have just died. MAKO rests behind the couch for a moment. In front of her stretches a hallway with her vice presidential office to her left.)_

RALEIGH: _(shooting at the advancing terrorists with his pistol from behind the couch) _Mako, run!

_(More terrorists come running into the hallway.)_

MAKO: _(seeing a bo staff on the wall next to the Vice Presidential Office) _I've got a better plan!

_(MAKO uses the tiny pistol and the bo staff in combination, swinging around, disarming Terrorist 1 before stopping, planting both feet on the ground, and shooting the one bullet from her gun into Terrorist 2's head. She then brings the bo staff down on the back of the disarmed Terrorist 1, probably killing him. More Secret Servicemen, let by Servicewoman SS5, arrive and engage the six terrorists on the other side of the couch, who are joined by still more bad guys)_

SS5: Mr. President, get back!

MAKO: Raleigh, we have to get out of here!

_(RALEIGH runs down to the end of the hallway with MAKO running around a corner, around which they see stairs and an elevator. They run to the stairs, but three terrorists come running up them, guns blazing. Theey flee to a bathroom, which the terrorists proceed to shoot up. MAKO is hit in the shoulder.)_

RALEIGH: Mako, I don't know what to do!

_(three shotgun blasts are heard, and the terrorists drop. CUT to SARAH PALIN)_

SARAH: Hey, don't say it too loud, or you'll be toast in November! _(She winks)_


	2. Chapter 2: No Rest for the Wicked

RALEIGH: Sarah, you're alive!

SARAH: You betcha! We can make it out if we take the stairs, c'mon!

MAKO: Who is she?

RALEIGH: Head of security, we're safe with her. _(They run down the stairs to be greeted by two Secret Service agents, who escort them outside.)_

SARAH: The President's okay, we gotta go.

_(RALEIGH, MAKO, and SARAH run outside to the presidential limousine, surrounded by a convoy of military vehicles. They scramble into the right side of the limousine; RALEIGH and MAKO take the third row, the Marines take the second row, and SARAH takes shotgun. As the convoy pulls away, MAKO looks out the window. Fighting continues to rage in the White House.)_

RALEIGH: Where are we going?

MARINE 1: DC Shatterdome, sir. Safest place on the East Coast.

_(From inside Mako's window, light tanks can be seen to be driving by. CUT to the DC Shatterdome, where HERMANN GOTTLIEB is leading SARAH, RALEIGH, and MAKO through a metal hallway. He still has his ENDEARING LIMP.)_

GOTTLIEB: It was a terrorist attack, Mr. President. Regrettable violence, but nothing we can't get past.

RALEIGH: Who are these guys? Yemenis?

_(They enter a stereotypical Good Guy HQ with lots of computer monitors. MAJOR GENERAL HUI , a weathered-looking Asian-American man in his forties, stands off to the side.)_

GOTTLIEB: They're an international terrorist group, lots of former Muslim Brotherhood. The FBI thinks Yemen's harboring them, but we're not sure.

RALEIGH: Okay. So what's their agenda?

_(GOTTLIEB gets out a remote and presses a button, and a bunch of images come on in the command center. The scenes depict riots in Kabul, Baghdad, Rome, Riyadh, and Rio de Janiero. A CNN newscaster states that "a new Gallup survey has found that over 35% of Americans are now 'patiently awaiting the end'." The news ticker says "APOCALYPSE WATCHERS IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD?" before a new one says SHOCKWAVES REVISIT RECOVERING PACIFIC RIM)_

GOTTLIEB: They think this signature _(gesturing to a flashing red dot in the western Pacific Ocean) _is going to signal the ultimate apocalypse.

MAKO: Wait, is that a kaiju?

RALEIGH: Are they back?

GOTTLIEB: Yes to both. _(He presses the remote again, and a bio of the kaiju appears on the screen. It's called "Butterface" and, from the aerial photo, appears to be a massive creature with a lion's mane of four tentacles with mouths full of sharp teeth at the ends. Instead of a face, it has a massive, bony spike.)_

GOTTLIEB: _(pacing) _They think because we couldn't stop them last time, that this time we're finished, that the kaiju are going to keep coming until we all die, until the world ends completely. They think that our war against the Kaiju is meant to undermine the will of God!

GENERAL HUI: _(in an American accent)_ Damn right.

_(SARAH shoots him a look.)_

GOTTLIEB: We need a morale boost, more than anything. We need to take out the Kaiju, and do it well. That's why we brought you here.

RALEIGH: I'm the President, and Mako's the Vice President, we can't-

GOTTLIEB: No one else can pilot a Jaeger like you could. No one! These days, we count ourselves lucky if the pilots don't break anything.

RALEIGH: Hey, Mako and me broke more than our fair share of things! _(MAKO grins)_

GOTTLIEB: So, are you in?

MAKO: We're in.

_(Adorable scientist and Kaiju aficionado NEWTON GEISZLER appears on the screens)_

NEWTON: They said they were in, right?

GOTTLIEB: _(smiles) _Yah.

NEWTON: Yeah! Okay, the Kaiju is heading for the Phillipines, probably Manila. I'm already here, um, we'll probably have your Jaeger ready for you by the time you get here. It's gonna be awesome, you're gonna love it, it's a Chinese project, tons of funding.

RALEIGH: Wasn't there an international treaty after the Kaiju War to never build Jaegers again?

NEWTON: _(laughing)_ Yeah like, I guess. C'mon. Meet me here, I miss you guys.

_(CUT to MAKO, RALEIGH, SARAH, GOTTLIEB, HUI on an airplane. Camera pans out to see that their collective security guards fill up the entire rest of the plane. _

_CUT TO MAKO, looking out the window again as the characters fly over the Pacific. She watches a hulking mass far below her move steadily through the sea. The Pacific Rim theme starts to play in the background)_


	3. Chapter 3: We Are the Cavalry

_(CUT to plane landing in the Philippines, Filipino jeeps and soldiers posted all over the airport. Camera pans to Manila, a city refurbished after the First Kaiju War in shining modernity, though many traditional neighborhoods have survived and many have been rebuilt in the old style. The cold black steel of the Manila Shatterdome lies nestled among the skyscrapers. Off to the side, a fallen Kaiju has been recrafted into a massive cathedral._

_CUT to NEWTON in front of several videoscreens in an office setting. The meeting rooms of EASTERN BUSINESSMEN are on the screens.)_

EB1: I'm deeply sorry, Mr. Geiszler, but I will not fund another shipment of Kaiju parts.

EB2: I agree. It is too expensive, and frankly too dangerous.

NEWTON: Their blood is the coldest superconductor we've ever encountered! Don't you realize what we could _do_ with something like that? Think of how _huge-_

EB1: Yes, we are aware of the potential, just as we are aware of all your past failure.

_(CUT to NEWTON's face, about to speak; behind him, MAKO and RALEIGH enter)_

EB3: We've been considering sending someone over to take on the Kaiju program from you.

EB1: Yes, we have. We do not wish to make your life difficult, so please follow the program.

RALEIGH: Hey, wanna ditch these dorks?

_(NEWTON turns around and grins)_

NEWTON: Hell yeah I do.

_(MAKO powers off the computer)_

EB1: This is your resignation!

_(NEWTON makes a sassy "like a give a fuck" face. MAKO, RALEIGH, and NEWTON strut out of the office.)_

NEWTON: Okay, that was awesome, but we're going to have to find a new source of Kaiju parts now.

MAKO: They made that big church out of a dead kaiju. Maybe they still have some parts you could use.

NEWTON: Worth a shot. Where's General Hui?

RALEIGH: The general guy? Giving our bodyguard the grand tour. So, where's our Jaeger?

_(NEWTON leans over to a FAMOUSLY SEXY FILIPINO ACTOR in a business suit. He doesn't look like he belongs in it)_

NEWTON: Hey, Ricky? Can you call up the general and tell him to go ask for kaiju parts at Alta Maria Cathedral? Tell him we need anything he can get.

RICKY: Yeah, sure.

NEWTON: Lemme take you guys to see the jaeger. It's named Sterling Phoenix. You'll love it, it's top of the line. Got stuff none of the old generations could dream of!

_(They exit. RICKY is calling someone on his cell phone. CUT to HUI picking up his cell phone. HUI is in a military-style compound room, not unlike the interior of the DC Shatterdome. Nearby, SARAH, the other American guards and soldiers, and several Filipino soldiers are joking around.)_

HUI: Hey Ricky, what's up?

_(CUT to RICKY)_

RICKY: Newton needs you to send some people down to Alta Maria and get whatever Kaiju parts they have, hopefully blood. You should probably go too; make it look official.

_(CUT to HUI)_

HUI: Alta Maria? That's the big one, right?

RICKY: _(through the phone) _Yeah.

HUI: Okay, we're on it. Good luck with the kaiju. _(HUI hangs up and puts his phone back in his pocket) _

Alright everyone, orders are to retrieve the kaiju parts at Alta Maria cathedral. Let's get down to the vehicles.

_(CUT to soldiers, SARAH, and HUI entering two "GKN Simba" armored personnel carrier vehicles. They drive off)_

SARAH: Why would you need military personnel for this kind of mission?

HUI: They didn't say.

_(CUT to NEWTON, MAKO, and RALEIGH entering a massive hangar.)_

NEWTON: Beautiful, isn't it?

_(STERLING PHOENIX is huge and covered with interlocking plates of bright white armor. Previous Jaegers would probably have only come up to its chest, but on the other hand it looks kinda like it was made in an Apple store. Its hands both have five fingers.)_

NEWTON: Its primary functions are old school nuclear, but a lot of the good weapons are electronic. Rechargable, you know?

_(NEWTON, MAKO, and RALEIGH move closer to the jaeger, and look up at it. Camera pans upward while moving forward in sync)_

MAKO: This shouldn't be hard.

_(Sterling Phoenix powers on, giving off bright light from reinforced panels on its joints, chest, and face. It looks mighty.)_

RALEIGH: This shouldn't be hard at all.

_(Pacific Rim theme starts to play. CUT to MAKO and RALEIGH strapping themselves in, and drifting. As in the original film, Raleigh takes the right side, MAKO takes the left. CUT to NEWTON and RICKY in the command center, watching it fire up.)_

NEWTON: This is gonna be so cool.

RICKY: You better hope no one finds out our funding's been cut.

NEWTON: We don't need to worry about that just yet. We'll probably get a lot of investors once we've _saved the Philippines_! C'mon, dude!

RICKY: Yeah, I guess you're right. I didn't want us to win because of the Chinese, anyways.

NEWTON: See, that's the spirit.

_(Camera pans out to full view of STERLING PHOENIX. CUT to MAKO and RALEIGH piloting the Jaeger through the exit bay. When it moves, the joints make sounds not unlike those of electronic car doors)_

RALEIGH: You know, I kinda missed this. It's so much simpler.

_(MAKO looks at the button that gives STERLING a sword)_

MAKO: I know what you mean.

_(CUT to the Jaeger walking through the sea, as BUTTERFACE approaches the harbor of Manila.)_

RALEIGH: Guess we're back in business.

(_The Pacific Rim theme kicks up a notch)_


	4. Chapter 4: Destroy a Great Empire

CHAPTER 4: SHIT GETS REAL

_(Two armored personnel carriers come to halt at Alta Maria Cathedral. SARAH, HUI, and over a dozen soldiers get out, though SARAH leaves her shotgun inside. They enter the church, finding it empty.)_

SARAH: Hey, is anyone here?

HUI: _(in Spanish) _Hey, is anyone here?

_(A priest enters)_

PRIEST: _(in Spanish) _Yeah. _(notices how everyone is armed) _What's going on?

HUI: _(in Spanish) _We're looking for leftover kaiju parts. Anything no one wanted to buy.

PRIEST: _(in Spanish) _No. Some Chinese came and paid a fortune for everything we had left. Said it was for a research project. They just left a little while ago.

HUI: The Chinese already have the parts.

SARAH: Those _bastards._

HUI: _(in Spanish) _Do you know where they went?

PRIEST: _(in Spanish) _They mentioned the North Port, and they left in a black Mazda Whirlwind.

HUI: _(in Spanish) _Thanks a ton for your help.

_(The PRIEST grins. CUT to everyone back in the vehicles, SARAH clutching her shotgun. HUI is on the phone with NEWTON in one of the backseats, while a Filipino soldier is driving.)_

NEWTON: Alright, I'm going to need you to chase after them and confiscate the parts.

HUI: I mean, they haven't actually broken the law.

NEWTON: They _have _put the Philippines and quite possibly humanity in mortal danger. We've got to do this.

HUI: Okay, we're going after them. Let's finish this mission!

_(The Filipino soldier presses the gas, and the APCs speed off towards the North Port. _

_CUT to BUTTERFACE, which gradually rises out of the water as it approaches the shores of the Philippines. Camera pans sideways, revealing STERLING PHOENIX jogging through the sea. CUT to BUTTERFACE rising from the deep. CUT to STERLING running, and then jumping into the air, fist held high. Small rockets activate beneath STERLING's feet, assisting its jump. _

_CUT to RALEIGH)_

RALEIGH: This is OUR planet, you son of a bitch!

_(RALEIGH slams a button, and rockets fire up across STERLING's back. MAKO twists a dial. The massive metal Jaeger falls through the air, and the sheer, insane inertia of the colossal machine is palpable. Spikes sprout from STERLING's knuckles, before BUTTERFACE deftly moves out of the way of the Jaeger entirely.)_

BUTTERFACE: _(with its four mouths)_ Blettthhh!

_(STERLING slams into the sea, but breaks its fall with its hands. CUT to inside the Jaeger, where MAKO and RALEIGH look surprised, and have mirrored its movements. CUT to STERLING, looking up at the monster. The Kaiju is about the same height, but much bigger. If a robot with no facial muscles could look super pissed, that would be STERLING's face. But that doesn't matter, because BUTTERFACE'S mouths quickly seize STERLING and brutally impale the machine on its horn. CUT inside the Jaeger, MAKO and RALEIGH both scream in pain.)_

RALEIGH: Newton! We're incapacitated, get us out of here!

NEWTON: Oh, God. God. Alright, I'll get a copter and we'll come get you guys right now!

MAKO: Not yet. _(She presses the sword button. CUT to STERLING's hand producing a floppy thing, which quickly straightens into a badass longsword. CUT to STERLING brandishing the sword, looking tough and defiant, if trapped and impaled, as BUTTERFACE withdraws its horn from STERLING PHOENIX's torso. CUT to MAKO.)_

MAKO: For my family.

_(BUTTERFACE's horn stabs STERLING's shoulder, making a variety of sickening crunchy noises that are probably very bad. STERLING's sword goes limp and useless, almost as if it was some kind of phallic symbolism that has been trumped by even stronger phallic symbolism. CUT to inside the Jaeger, where MAKO's arm and shoulder have been ripped off her body down to the ribs. She appears to be in shock. RALIEGH is rushing over to her)_

RALEIGH: Did you send the copter?!

_(CUT to the command center)_

NEWTON: Yup! Everything's going to be fine, just get you and Mako out of the Jaeger!

RICKY: I don't think everything's going to be fine.

NEWTON: Shut up and go get one of the helicopters.

RICKY: We could hire someone to do that if we had more funding.

NEWTON: It's gonna work, alright? I have a plan. _(His phone rings, RICKY exits as NEWTON answers the phone) _Hello?

HUI: Hey, it's Hui, we're at the port, and the Chinese are on this boat. The boat hasn't left yet because they're taking on some people who want to get away from Manila, but it's a Chinese ship, so-

NEWTON: Hijack it.

HUI: What?

NEWTON: You're going to have to hijack it. Interrogate people, all that stuff. Kaiju parts have gone up in priority…we need whatever we can get.

HUI: I thought we already needed whatever we can get.

NEWTON: Well, now it's by any means necessary or whatever, okay? Just do it, and don't hurt anyone.

HUI: If this wasn't super important…fine. We'll call you back when we're done.

_(CUT to STERLING PHOENIX, which is now being actively gutted and shredded by the kaiju. Like a doll, it lies limply in the monster's coils, its left arm dangling by a thread. "Radioactive" starts to play in the background. CUT inside the Jaeger, where a "Blethhhh!" can be heard, as RALEIGH carries a limp and bleeding MAKO up out of the cockpit, into the Jaeger's head.)_

RALEIGH: You're gonna be okay, Mako. We're all gonna be okay!

_(CUT outside to the Jaeger's arm falling into the sea. CUT to soldiers, HUI, and SARAH silently detaining the students who had the parts, taking the parts, loading the stuff into the personnel carriers, and leaving. CUT to RALEIGH and MAKO jumping onto a net dropped by an approaching helicopter. CUT to the perspective of the city, as the kaiju drops the jaeger and moves toward the camera, and the helicopter quietly moves away. CUT to MAKO and RALEIGH being pulled into the helicopter. Mako leans against the back, as medics redress her shoulder. She looks away from the camera, towards the city, as the kaiju destroys it in the background. Fade to black.)_


	5. Chapter 5: Don't Drop Your Macbook

CHAPTER 5: DON'T DROP YOUR MACBOOK

_(Open to STERLING PHOENIX in the North Bay of Manila, waves lapping at its hull. Its chest is destroyed, as if its heart was missing. Text appears in FANCY MILITARY FONT at the bottom of the screen.)_

2032

THE FIRST YEAR OF THE SECOND KAIJU WAR

_(CUT to the docks of a tropical city in a developing country. ONE OF THE SOMALI ACTORS FROM CAPTAIN PHILLIPS (TAHIL) is led by a white military dude, who is clearly American. They walk through the port, past workmen carrying and unloading cargo, and shops that have signs in English, Portuguese, and native script. They approach a hulking metal ship, which towers over them. As they climb on, it can be seen on the side that the ship is called the "U.S.S. Barack Obama". CUT to the two figures going down a hallway. The American halts.)_

AMERICAN SOLDIER: Here's the chief's office, sir.

TAHIL: Thank you. _(He enters, to see an older, bearded man in robes (MR. HASAN KENADID) in a meeting room with a number of American military officers. The meeting table is emblazoned with the Congressional insignia. MR. KENADID grins and spreads his arms wide.)_

MR. KENADID: Tahil, my old friend! How I've missed you! _(They embrace)_

TAHIL: I've missed you as well!

_(CUT to an American commander with a large number of awards on his lapel. He's old, white, bald, and a little crotchety, but tough looking with an easy smile. A metal name placard by his side says "GEN. WINSTON KAUFMAN, US. NAVY.")_

KAUFMAN: Why, that's brilliant! Let's get down to business, shall we?

_(TAHIL and MR. KENADID turn to face KAUFMAN. MR. KENADID has his hand on TAHIL's shoulder)_

MR. KENADID: Yes, I think that's quite in order.

KAUFMAN: Gentlemen, let's be frank. Mr. Kenadid _(he nods to MR. KENADID) we _understand that you were dishonorably discharged in the First Kaiju War.

MR. KENADID: Took down a lot of the bastards with me, though. _(He grins.)_

KAUFMAN: That's…that's excellent. We have a common foe, and we are in need of your services. Yours too _(nods to Tahil)_.

TAHIL: Sir, I was never deployed-

KAUFMAN: There's a war on, sonny, and frankly we can't afford to be choosy. We need any pilot we can find, and frankly you're some of the few capable pilots left. I hope you'll be willing to join us.

TAHIL: I'm not sure if I can do something like this.

MR. KENADID: My son, can we have a moment outside?

TAHIL: Yes, Mr. Kenadid. _(they exit. As they leave, KAUFMAN sighs. CUT to outside the meeting room. MR. KENADID and TAHIL enter)_

MR: KENADID: Listen, my son. You are young. You may not understand this, but when the world is dark, that is when you must fight. You face down evil, and you rage against it until it can hurt no one.

TAHIL: But-

MR. KENADID: But nothing! It does not matter if you lose, my son! It does not matter if your soul goes tumbling into the abyss! It matters that for _one moment_, _just one moment, _you looked evil in the face, and stood up for what's _important! My son! Do you not understand?_

TAHIL: I understand, Mr. Kenadid._(He grins.)_

MR. KENADID: _(grins back)_ I know you do. _(They embrace tightly as comrades.) _Welcome to the jihad.

_(CUT to NEWTON in the command center. RICKY can be seen on the videoscreen.)_

_RICKY: I'm coming in from your north side. Hope you're ready for us, they're pretty messed up._

NEWTON: Yeah, Ricky, we got people out there. How bad is it?

RICKY: The girl…she lost her arm out there, homes.

NEWTON: Oh god. I don't know if…oh god.

RICKY: C'mon. I'm landing, meet me upstairs.

NEWTON: Alright. _(As he exits, he pauses in the doorway, and whispers "fuck" dejectedly)_

_(CUT to the offices of the Manila Shatterdome. Secretaries are taking lots of calls.)_

SECRETARY: _(in Spanish) _I'm sorry for your loss, but the Shatterdome has not arrived to a decision at this time, however we are working diligently as new opportunities arise.

_(SECRETARY hangs up, GOTTLIEB enters)_

GOTTLIEB: Everyone! We need to evacuate everyone from this building to the Filipino redoubt in Midanao. This compound won't survive an hour if that Kaiju decides to go for it. _(He looks out the window at the honking traffic)_ And we'll have to do it by air.

SECRETARY: _(accented) _We've got a bunch of civilian helicopters on call. Guess the kaiju's awakening a lot of national pride.

GOTTLIEB: Where…are the military helicopters?

SECRETARY: _(accented, quizzical) _Our sponsors in China stopped funding those a couple weeks ago.

GOTTLIEB: What? Why?

SECRETARY: _(accented) _Mr. Geiszler started using all those German curse words-

GOTTLIEB: Vot?! Gottverdammt verfickten schweinebackeschwachsinn _(storms off)_

SECRETARY: (accented) Um, yes, it was a lot like that.

_(CUT to HUI and SARAH in the APCs with the soldiers. The traffic lane leading deeper into Manila is practically empty, while the traffic lane leading back out is horribly backed up.)_

HUI: This traffic is really weird.

SARAH: You think we should call the command center?

HUI: Yeah, probably. _(They continue to drive. After a moment driver in the backed-up lane shouts at them.)_

DRIVER: "Turn around, _idiotas_! We already lost!"

SARAH: You wanna do it now?

HUI: Yeah, probably should ask. _(HUI dials the command center on his cell phone.)_

_(CUT to the empty command center. GOTTLIEB storms in. The phone starts to ring in the command center. GOTTLIEB looks at it for a moment, sees that it is from GENERAL HUI, and picks it up. CUT to HUI in the back of the armored personnel carrier)_

HUI: Hey Newton, we hijacked the boat and got the kaiju parts back from the Chinese. We should have them to you in a bit, because traffic's, like, really good. But the exit lanes are really clogged up so I was wondering, like, what was up with that. Did they lose a soccer game? That's big here, right?

_(CUT to GOTTLIEB)_

GOTTLIEB: What did…you do?

_(CUT to the top of the Manila Shatterdome, where NEWTON is in the helicopter with RICKY as medical professionals race MAKO away. CUT to inside the helicopter.)_

RICKY: …so most of the staff and military personnel have already been evacuated by volunteer air crews. Hey, so does General Hui's team know the kaiju's beaten us?

NEWTON: _(very surprised.) _No! No they do not. But…they will. Right now. Can I borrow your cell phone? _(RICKY passes it to NEWTON, and NEWTON calls, and puts the phone to his ear. He takes the phone down from his ear and looks at it quizzically.) _That's weird. The line is busy.

_(CUT to GOTTLIEB, inside the Manila Shatterdome command center, talking to HUI.)_

GOTTLIEB: The terrorists have just finished their takeover of the DC Shatterdome. The United States no longer controls the White House, the American fleet is locked down in Mozambique, the Philippines is collapsing around us, and now _someone's_ gone and ticked off the Chinese and now _you_, HUI, _apparently _the sanest man we've got left in the free world, have just hijacked a ship and _stolen Chinese military property, effectively declaring war on the world's largest economy _in the _middle of a second Kaiju invasion_! What the _hell_ is happening?

_(CUT to HUI and SARAH in the personnel carrier)_

HUI: I…um…

SARAH: Is he chewing you out?

HUI: _(taking the phone off his ear) _Yeah.

SARAH: Lemme handle him. _(He passes her the phone.) _


	6. Chapter 6: Advancing to Future Victories

_(CUT to GOTTLIEB on the phone. He looks surprised, and then slightly anguished. He takes the phone down from his ear.)_

GOTTLIEB: That's…that's very hurtful.

_(NEWTON runs in)_

NEWTON: Wait, since when were _you _here?

GOTTLIEB: _(looking up from the phone) _I've...I've been here this _whole time!_

NEWTON: And you never said hi to me or anything?!

GOTTLIEB: Y-you seemed very busy!

NEWTON: Whatever, man, we have to get out of here. Give me the phone. _(GOTTLIEB gives him the phone). _Hey, um- _(notices he is talking to a ranting Sarah Palin) _ Are you _Sarah Palin?_ Damn, Hui, you have my blessing.

_(CUT to HUI)_

HUI: That's weird, man.

_(CUT to GOTTLIEB)_

GOTTLIEB: That's very weird.

_(SARAH's voice can be heard on the phone)_

SARAH: Yeah, that's pretty weird.

NEWTON: _(looks around. There is a pause.) _Okay, um, Sarah, what the old dude over here was _trying_ to say is that we lost the battle and you need to get out of town. We definitely still need those parts.

GOTTLIEB: _(angrily) _Did _you_ give the hijacking order?

NEWTON: _(sheepishly) _I _might_ not have.

GOTTLIEB: _(exasperated) _Are there any evacuation helicopters left?

NEWTON: Uh, yeah. We have a guy up top.

GOTTLIEB: A guy. _(He exits.)_ Unbelievable.

_(CUT to a hospital room, where medical professionals are stabilizing MAKO. RALEIGH, by her side, watches a small television nearby. CUT to the television. It appears a man in a SWAT outfit is being interviewed. The headline at the bottom of the screen says "TERRORISTS OVERRUN DC; CAN THE FEDS TAKE IT BACK?")_

SWAT GUY: The militants have created hostage situations in _(gestures down the street) _all these buildings. _(CUT "inside the television" to Washington DC) _We're going to drop in commandos via helicopter and force them to fight us on two fronts at once. _(The camera pans up to an Apache helicopter dropping commandos on the roof; from another roof, a figure with an RPG can be seen to launch a missile at the helicopter, exploding it. One bystander in a scarf vomits on the pavement.) _It is vital that everyone stays calm. The situation is under control. _(He exits. The reporter takes the microphone back to her mouth, and the camera pans to her face. CUT "back outside the television".)_

REPORTER: _(with wide eyes). _Well, you just saw it, everyone, it's a warzone out here, and I'm Colleen Cox.

_(CUT to Raleigh, who looks like he might want to cry. He changes the channel. A young man is being interviewed; this time the bottom of the screen says "HEROES OF DC: YOUNG HERO KILLS TERRORIST-SAVES TWENTY")_

REPORTER: What provoked you to act so quickly?

YOUNG HERO: _(with maximal swag) _I dunno man, I thought he was a cop.

_(CUT to RALEIGH, who turns off the television.)_

MEDICAL TEAM: Okay, she's ready. Now let's get the hell out of here.

_(They rush out to the top of the Manila Shatterdome building, where RICKY, GOTTLIEB, and a few remaining personnel are loaded. NEWTON arrives, and hops onto the helicopter as well. RALEIGH looks out at the city; it is raining, and Manila burns in the background. BUTTERFACE wrecks the city unopposed.)_

RICKY: C'mon, dude! _(The medical team finishes loading MAKO onto the helicopter. RALIEGH realizes he wasn't paying attention, and gets on the helicopter as it starts to fire up. As they close the doors, RALEIGH silently looks out at the ruined city. CUT to the city.)_

BUTTERFACE: Bletttthhh!

_(CUT inside the helicopter, where NEWTON is on the phone with SARAH.)_

NEWTON: _(on the phone)_ You guys still have the parts?

RALIEGH: I need to go to DC.

NEWTON: _(on the phone) _Yeah, that's great.

GOTTLIEB: Mr. President, frankly speaking you're the only pilot we've got left.

RICKY: Dude, c'mon.

GOTTLIEB: _Legitimate_ pilot.

NEWTON: _(on the phone) _Okay, so where are you guys?

GOTTLIEB: Point being, we can't afford to lose you.

RALEIGH: I'm the _president! _America needs me to be there.

GOTTLIEB: Mr. President…I'm afraid the world needs you to be here.

NEWTON: Hey Ricky? Sarah says the kaiju parts are down at St. Thomas's University.

RICKY: Gotcha.

GOTTLIEB: Why…why do you even _need_ kaiju parts?

NEWTON: It's a really complicated thing.

GOTTLIEB: Ricky, you will not-

RICKY: Say I'm a jaeger pilot.

GOTTLIEB: You're not a jaeger pilot.

NEWTON: I think you're a jaeger pilot, Ricky.

RICKY: Say I'm a jaeger pilot, and I'll listen to you.

GOTTLIEB: I refuse to call you something you're not-

NEWTON: I really do, though. I think you're a jaeger pilot.

RICKY: I know _you_ think I'm a jaeger pilot. I don't think _he_ does, though.

GOTTLIEB: That's because-

_(CUT to SARAH, HUI, and SOLDIERS in the APCs below, near the University of Santo Tomas)_

SARAH: Hey, I think I see them!

_(CUT to a worm's eye view of the helicopter. The kaiju stands directly in the helicopter's path towards the university)_

SARAH: I'm calling him back.

_(The kaiju topples a cellphone tower. SARAH now has zero bars)_

DRIVING SOLDIER: It was a good thought.

SARAH: Hey, Mullone?

DRIVING SOLDIER: Yeah?

SARAH: Scooch.

DRIVING SOLDIER: What?

_(SARAH pushes him out of the chair and takes the wheel. He scrambles to the backseat)_

SARAH: _(hitting the gas) _Vasquez, load the anti-tank rounds! Mullone, I want you to fire it, on my order! _(They obey)_

HUI: Are you _insane?_

_(CUT to SARAH, twisting the wheel. CUT outside, where one of the APC's makes a sharp turn out of the university parking lot and into the street. CUT back to SARAH, with a fierce look in her eyes. GENERAL HUI looks on helplessly from the backseat.)_

SARAH: Nah, I'm just full of surprises.

HUI: How is that even _different-_

SARAH: All the fleshy parts are in the coolers in the other APC anyway, now fire that son of a bitch!

FORMER DRIVING SOLDIER: Roger!

_(CUT to outside. The APC's anti-tank guns go off, exploding on BUTTERFACE's skin, leaving tiny welts.)_

BUTTERFACE: Blettttthhhhh! _(The APC, firing at the gigantic monster, speeds down the street, heading deeper into Manila. Camera pans upwards, to the helicopter. It is wobbling noticeably.)_

RICKY: Oh, so i'm not good enough?

NEWTON: Hey, guys?

RICKY: Is that it? I'm not even a good regular pilot to you? I'm so forgetful, I forget things, I'm only _human_, look at me! _(He waves his arms around, no longer piloting the helicopter)_

GOTTLIEB: A good helicopter pilot would _not be acting like you currently are!_

NEWTON: Guys! Shut up!

RICKY: What, dude?

NEWTON: I think my cell service stopped working.

RICKY: Man, did you butt in for that? We have way more important things to worry about like-

_(CUT to bird's eye view of the action outside. The kaiju is chasing after a constantly firing APC, making screech noises. It runs right past them.)_

BUTTERFACE: Bletttttththhhhhhhhh!

RICKY: Oh shit! _(steers hard to the left. The kaiju is now between the helicopter and the APC. CUT to SARAH)_

SARAH: Okay, guys, now we just have to pray they head for the other APC to pick up the parts. We don't want that kaiju turning around.

HUI: How about we pray to _not die_?

SARAH: We're soldiers. What kind of general are you?

HUI: I'm…I'm more of a diplomat, really.

SARAH: Goddammit. _(CUT to her rearview mirror. The gigantic monster is tremendous in size, and destroys the pavement wherever it walks.)_ Well, feel free to negotiate. _(as the camera pans up to reveal the power and size of the creature, and its weird ass spike face. CUT back to the helicopter.)_

RICKY: It's got that APC locked down! _(He presses several buttons that look like they cause missiles. CUT outside, where the helicopter fires missiles at the kaiju.)_

BUTTERFACE:_ (The missiles hit, causing more welts)_ Blethhhhh! _(It turns around and begins to rampage towards the helicopter. CUT to SARAH)_

SARAH: Those _idiots. _

_(CUT to the second APC, where soldiers frantically unload kaiju parts in crates with the assistance of nearby traffic-jammed Filipino civilians, and hold them up for the approaching helicopter. CUT back inside the helicopter, which is going as high as possible to avoid the kaiju.)_

MAKO: Oh my god, you are a terrible driver!

RALEIGH: Mako, you're conscious!

MAKO: No (_she shakes her head)_, I am sleeping. Bye. _(She goes back to sleep.)_

MEDIC: It sometimes takes a bit for the meds to kick in-_(CUT outside. BUTTERFACE is directly below them.)_

BUTTERFACE: BLETHHHHHHH!

GOTTLIEB: I would like to point out at this point that none of the other escape helicopters had this problem.

RICKY: I _play by my own rules, _alright?

GOTTLIEB: Oh, you don't need to tell me. I remember.

NEWTON: Cut him some slack, dude!

RICKY: _(simultaneously) _Oh you _motherfu-(starts messing with dials and levers in the helicopter)_

RALEIGH: Wait, what do you remember?

NEWTON: Were you not paying attention, like, five minutes ago?

RALEIGH: _People are dying in _**_horrible_**_ ways, like _**literally **all the time. I have a _lot _on my plate right now.

NEWTON: (_turns away)_ Woah, dude, if it's gonna be like that.

_(CUT to RICKY taking a dive. CUT to SARAH)_

SARAH: _(with a look of forlorn confusion) _Why are you doing that?

_(CUT to the helicopter doing badass sweeps and dives through the tentacles of the giant monster.)_

NEWTON: Wait should we deploy the net?

RICKY: Yes you should deploy the net!

_(RALEIGH and NEWTON deploy the net, as the helicopter swings in front of the second APC. The soldiers throw the parts crates into the net, and then run away. One Filipino guy looks up at the monster in immobile surprise before being crushed)_

RICKY: Hell yeah! _(The helicopter swings away with the parts in tow, ready to escape to safety. The camera faces the victorious helicopter, with the kaiju defeated in the background.)_

BUTTERFACE: BLETTTTTTTH!

_(CUT to inside the helicopter)_

GOTTLIEB: Ricky, I apologize for my comment.

RICKY: It's cool.

NEWTON: What was that even for?

GOTTLIEB: _(grinning) _I told him what he needed to hear.

_(CUT to a view of the helicopter and kaiju from behind the kaiju. The kaiju stares at the helicopter, and knocks over several cars in the traffic jam. Several car alarms go off.)_

BUTTERFACE: Blettth.


	7. Chapter 7: Dogmas and Dreams

_(As the chopper escaped into the distance, SARAH, HUI and SOLDIERS drive deeper into the city, before encountering a wrecked building blocking the path. The party, consisting of SARAH, armed with a shotgun, HUI, armed with a pistol, and eight soldiers, three Filipinos and five Americans, armed with military gear, escape to a nearby building. In the distance, the kaiju can be seen to be still ransacking the city.)_

HUI: So. What now?

_(SARAH climbs on top of some rubble. We see her view of the Shatterdome, heavily mauled, most of the buildings around it destroyed. CUT to the other ten soldiers (six Filipinos, four Americans) summiting another pile of rubble. One of them looks out at the Shatterdome from a different angle.)_

SARAH: Now?

_(CUT back to SARAH.)_

SARAH: Now we fight back.

_(Pacific Rim theme commences on strings instruments. It seems rather peaceful in the helicopter late at night, as it approaches the Filipino hideout in Mindanao. Everyone is mostly relaxed. CUT to them landing, they land, get off, and CUT to them meeting some Filipino military leaders. The doctors take MAKO away for treatment, and RALEIGH, as if in a haze, passes out in a bed. He is shirtless for the fangirls. CUT to blackness, and end Pacific Rim theme)_

_(CUT to RALEIGH's room, where NEWTON stumbles in. (_0200 HOURS, MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES, says the text at the bottom of the screen)_, and NEWTON is clearly exhausted. His nose is bleeding, and he passes out on the top bunk. CUT to RICKY, who is asleep. _CUT to GOTTLIEB, asleep at his desk, surrounded by many pages of dense scratch work on complex mathematics. _CUT to Manila, where SARAH, HUI, and the soldiers have made a campfire in the destroyed remnants of the office section of the Shatterdome. CUT to NEWTON, who has bled a little on his pillow. He is deeply asleep. CUT to the SWAT guy from earlier, dead on the sidewalk. CUT to MAKO, who looks rather sickly and small on the hospital bed, especially with her arm and shoulder destroyed. The television can be heard in the background.)_

ANNOUNCER: There are some people who remember that when the going gets tough, you've got to get your head up, and keep going until the job gets done. _(CUT to a view of the television) Now on_, These are our Heroes.

_(CUT to a more zoomed-out view of MAKO's room. She is the only one there.)_

_(MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES. 800 HOURS)_

RALEIGH: _(monologuing internally through a series of cuts, as he showers and stuff) _I used to feel like I always won, in the end. Like even if the world went to hell, we'd figure out something. (_CUT to Manila, which is now mostly leveled. The kaiju almost seems to be losing interest.) _But it really did this time. And we don't have a clue how to stop it. _(He exits, fully dressed.)_ Sometimes, you gotta keep going anyway.

_(CUT to RALEIGH meeting with GOTTLIEB, who is awake and working.)_

I'm gonna go back to DC. Lead some kind of resistance. Help out somehow.

GOTTLIEB: In all honesty, sir, you're the _president_-

RALEIGH: And I do what I need to. I'm gonna need a Jaeger.

GOTTLIEB: Sterling Phoenix could take _weeks _to repair-

RALEIGH: DC could be rubble by then. Is there another one I can use?

GOTTLIEB: Of course not-

_(CUT to RICKY, leaning on the side of a doorway like a sassy rebel)_

RICKY: Actually, there is. And I'll take him there if I can be his copilot.

GOTTLIEB: Completely out of the question.

RICKY: Okay. Got any other pilots around? Mako might not even _survive_ weeks.

GOTTLIEB: You're not _an actual pilot-_

RALEIGH: Okay, what the _hell_ did you do?

RICKY: It was ten years ago.

_(FLASHBACK SEQUENCE TO THE FIRST KAIJU WAR. Everything looks technicolor. RICKY is in a Jaeger capsule, but is clearly inside a compound, not a Jaeger. The compound looks like one of those "futuristic" command centers from old movies. All the computers are huge, for example.)_

RICKY: _(narrating) _The government wanted to see if they could run a Jaeger remotely.

_(CUT to a closeup of scientists, watching the sea. Pan the camera to see a hulking grey steel figure, moving through the sea. It doesn't look very advanced, and has no weapons. CUT back the command center, where a GENERAL and a SCIENTIST are walking towards young RICKY, inside his capsule)_

GENERAL: Think it'll work?

SCIENTIST: Well, it's a bit like a drone, really. Should work the same way. In the end, we just moved the cockpit. It's much safer for the pilots, too.

GENERAL: I just still don't trust that kaijupattern stuff. We're here to fight these bastards, not copy them.

SCIENTIST: We do what we must. There's really no other way to defy the square-cube law.

_(They stop. CUT to what they see: A young RICKY works piloting the jaeger. He is drifting with his copilot. The copilot is in a similar capsule, but on the other side of RICKY's cockpit, so we can't see him clearly. In front of them, screens show what the Jaeger sees: mostly ocean, but a metal pole is sticking out of the ground at an angle off to the side.)_

SCIENTIST: Okay, Ricky. I'm going to need you to pick up the rebar. _(While Ricky picks up the rebar, SCIENTIST addresses the GENERAL.) _This is Ricardo Plaza, but we call him Ricky. He's one of our better candidates. Everything okay in there?

RICKY: Yeah.

GENERAL: Who's the other guy?

SCIENTIST: Doesn't know English, but Ricky can talk to him.

RICKY: His name's Omar. Free Syrian Army vet. _(RICKY grunts as he hefts the rebar.) _He doesn't like knowing what pork tastes like.

SCIENTIST: Okay, now take the rebar back to shore.

RICKY: Roger._ (Ricky starts to walk. Everything is going well.)_

GENERAL: It takes all kinds, I guess.

SCIENTIST: Obviously.

_(There is a lull in conversation.)_

RICKY: Okay, got a problem.

SCIENTIST: What is it?

RICKY: I'm getting a memory. Weird guy, black hat. Neither of us remember him.

SCIENTIST: It's something subconscious resurfacing. You should both probably address this now.

RICKY: _(eyes wide) _I really, really don't want to do that.

SCIENTIST: You're going to end up _disrupting the connection-_

_(CUT outside: The Jaeger impales itself on the rebar.)_

SCIENTIST: _(looking at the video screen) _What the hell are you doing?

GENERAL: Is that supposed to happen?

RICKY: No!

SCIENTIST: Address the memory before this gets any more out of control!

RICKY: I am not going to do that!

_(CUT outdoors, he Jaeger is walking towards shore. The command center can be seen on the shoreline.)_

SCIENTIST: What the hell was that, Ricky? We don't have that many of these!

RICKY: I…I don't know.

SCIENTIST: That's it, I'm taking you both out of the drift. We'll bring it into the hangar by copter.

GENERAL: You must understand how this looks, Doctor.

SCIENTIST: Trust me that it was a fluke. _(He walks towards a panel, as if to input commands._ _A massive pole of metal rebar crashes through the ceiling, wrecking the panel and much of the command center. CUT outside, where the jaeger is wandering/rampaging, Godzilla-like, around the military facility that launched the Jaeger. Machine gun shots and chopper sounds can be heard. End FLASHBACK.)_

RICKY: A lot of people died.

GOTTLIEB: Thousands. You know how hard it was to cover that up?

RICKY: Cover it up?

GOTTLIEB: Yes. The Pan Pacific Defense Corps thought it would be terrible for morale. _(to RALEIGH) _Even you didn't find out, apparently.

RALEIGH: But you really are a pilot.

GOTTLIEB: No, he's an incompetent.

RICKY: Drifting from a distance is _different! _It wasn't my fault!

GOTTLIEB: It is _impossible _for it to be different. You _hallucinated,_ and then you _failed!_

RICKY: I saw what I saw!

GOTTLIEB: Regardless, we cannot afford you failing us again. Not at a time like this.

RALEIGH: I'm talking him with me.

GOTTLIEB: No! Are you mad?

RALEIGH: The world's mad, Dr. Gottlieb._(He turns to leave.)_

GOTTLIEB: That doesn't justify our own madness in the _slightest_-

RALEIGH: Bye. And good luck! _(RALEIGH and RICKY exit.)_

_(GOTTLIEB puts his hands on his desk.)_

GOTTLIEB: Gottverdammt.


	8. Chapter 8: Desperate Measures

CHAPTER 8

_(RALEIGH and RICKY walk down a hallway in the Mindanao base in the Phillipines.)_

RICKY: Okay, I'll explain it to you in the helicopter.

Nah, you don't need to drive. _(They enter a hangar, where a number of personnel are attending to a large steel airplane with American insignia on the side.)_

RICKY: Air Force One.

RALEIGH: Hell yeah.

_(An officer runs up.)_

OFFICER: Mr. President, sir!

RALEIGH: I'm going to need to leave for a personal venture. Please keep this clandestine.

OFFICER: Any security personnel, sir?

RALEIGH: Two, please. And a pilot.

_(OFFICER dials a number on his phone.)_

OFFICER: And where to?

_(RALEIGH looks at RICKY.)_

RICKY: North Korea.

_(Pacific Rim theme starts to play. CUT to Air Force One flying to North Korea. CUT to GOTTLIEB, still aggravated, looking out the window to see what's left of STERLING PHOENIX being carried in by helicopters. CUT to SARAH, HUI, and SOLDIERS, in the Shatterdome armory, working with various metals and machinery. CUT to NEWTON, in a lab with chemicals and kaiju parts. CUT back to Air Force One, where RICKY has a martini, while RALEIGH has inexplicably poured beer into a martini glass. RALEIGH and RICKY clink drinks.)_

RALEIGH: So how's this going to work?

RICKY: _(He pulls out his phone) _You probably know how North Korea's always been a bit of a lone wolf, even during the Kaiju War. What you don't know-wait do you know this?

RALEIGH: I know literally nothing. _(He drinks)_

RICKY: Right on. So Kim Jong Un has everyone in the country convinced that North Korea is the last standing Pacific Rim country, and that their one jaeger is the only thing keeping the country alive.

RALEIGH: They have a jaeger? How good is it?

RICKY: According to them, it's very good.

RALEIGH: Shit.

RICKY: It's all I can get you, man.

RALIEGH: So how are we going to get it if everyone loves it so much?

RICKY: That's where it gets complicated.

_(Pacific Rim theme kicks up again. CUT to TAHIL and MR. KENADID silently getting off a commercial flight to DC. They are both wearing sunglasses. Why are there still commercial fights to DC? Shhhhh._ _CUT to the USS BARACK OBAMA meeting room)_

MILITARY COMMANDER: You can't be saying you'll be sending _jihadists!_

KAUFMAN: I'm sorry, but it's already done, Colonel. There's no going back for us now.

_(CUT to Washington DC. The camera latches onto TAHIL, MR. KENADID and a number of armed men, who walk briskly though the city streets. CUT back to the meeting room)_

MILITARY COMMANDER: It's practically _treasonous_-

KAUFMAN: We're already treasonous.

_(CUT to Washington DC. As they walk, green-uniformed and blue-uniformed figures lie dead behind cars and other places with good cover. TAHIL and company approach what looks like a subway entrance, except that it says "DC Shatterdome" on the overhead sign, along with a helpful picture of a kaiju with a "no" symbol over it. They descend down the stairs. CUT back to the meeting room.)_

KAUFMAN: Listen. We've got one shot to win this. _(CUT back to DC, where a scientist meets TAHIL and friends, and guides them down a hallway) _And whether you like it or not, I'm going to take it, no matter whose hand I have to shake.

MILITARY COMMANDER: Well, I won't stand for it, and neither will the Marines.

KAUFMAN: _(TAHIL, MR. KENADID, SCIENTIST, and SOLDIERS enter a great atrium. Towering over them is a jaeger, painted with dark green palettes. It's dressed like a militant, and is armed with a gigantic Kalashnikov.) _That no longer matters.

_(CUT to TAHIL. He grins. His teeth are perfectly white. CUT to the MILITARY COMMANDER)_

MILITARY COMMANDER: …w-what? Kaufman, i don't think you understand. _(Two Military Police walk in. He gains confidence from this.)_ You're going to jail, buddy. They're not gonna let you do this.

_(KAUFMAN forces a smile)_

KAUFMAN: Officers, I'm _afraid_ this man is causing a disturbance.

_(The MILITARY COMMANDER seems completely taken aback. The MPs take him away)_

KAUFMAN: Thank you very much. _(He dials a number on a nearby phone). _Yes, it's Kaufman. Listen, we need the Marines out of the picture before we can get out of here. Yeah, I wish we could load them up, too. It's fine, I prepared for this. Winning over the boss was a sort of last-ditch effort anyway. _(He listens for a few moments) _Yeah. So, kick it up a notch? I thought so. _(He pauses again.) _Yeah, well R&D can suck off Cthulhu at this point. Cut half their funding, we're going on vacation.

_(ZOOM OUT REALLY FAR, BASICALLY INTO SPACE so that you can see the American coup flotilla on a trajectory for Yemeni waters.) _This is gonna be the best war since Iraq.


	9. Chapter 9: Do What You Can

CHAPTER 9

GOTTLIEB: Gentlemen, I apologize. But the fact remains that we simply don't have the funding to engage in full jaeger repairs. Yes, Secretary of Defense.

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: In that case, why are we even here?

GOTTLIEB: We're here because the Philippines needs us to be here. No country has ever fallen to the kaiju, and we do not intend to let yours be the first. We'll do what we must to win this war. There are refugees and evacuees and aid packages to deal with, along with a plethora of citizens ready to fight if we're willing to let them.

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Strategically speaking, that's unsound. Kaiju have always historically been attracted to densely populated areas. If enough of us gather here, it will constitute a city the Kaiju might think is worthy to destroy.

GOTTLIEB: _(he sighs) _And what's your alternative? Taipei? Hong Kong?

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Maybe. _(GOTTLIEB looks surprised.) _This isn't the First Kaiju War, Dr. Gottlieb. This time we're losing. And when you're losing a war, people are always going to die.

_(GOTTLIEB stares blankly.)_

(CUT to Sarah, HUI, and soldiers, still working. A number of bombs have been produced.)

SOLDIER: I think we're running out of explosives.

SARAH: That's okay, we'll get more once we send some people downtown.

VASQUEZ: Any idea how many we'll need?

SARAH: _(laughs) _The monster's big, so we'll need as many as you guys can make. _(She spies HUI looking out the window) _Hui, quit slackin' off and get back to work!

HUI: I'm not slacking off. Look.

SARAH: _(runs up and looks) _Vergara, get in here with those binoculars!

(_Vergara gets up and runs in, and looks out the window through his binoculars.)_

VERGARA: Oh, dear God.

_(CUT to what he sees. A massive navy is on the horizon. CUT back to the group looking out the window; VERGARA passes the binoculars to SARAH. She looks.)_

SARAH: As if we didn't have enough problems. _(CUT to what she sees; they are bearing the Chinese flag.) _It's the Chinese navy.

HUI: C'mon. That is just plain uncalled for.

(_CUT to MAKO, in her hospital bed, looking smaller and weaker. A doctor says "-down to 85 pounds": another responds with "nothing seems to be working." RALEIGH begins to narrate)_

RALEIGH: I think you can kind of feel it when someone you care about is going to die. _(CUT to the doctors performing an operation. "Couldn't we just give her a robot arm?" one says. "Why the hell would we know how to do that?" another replies.)_

RALEIGH: I'm thinking, maybe if we won, maybe if we beat those monsters and brought everything back to normal again, that this will all be over, like she'll grow her arm back and we'll go back to the white house and start helping people again. But I don't think the world's going to be fixed again. Maybe ever. That's not what's important, I guess. We just have to beat them before it breaks anymore…god, she's not even dead, and I already have to avenge my best friend. _(CUT to RICKY and his martinis. CUT to the martinis. CUT to chemistry equipment, and CUT to NEWTON working in his lab.)_

NEWTON: _(working fiercely and desperately) _It just…it just doesn't biologically agree. God, their nerves are _literally _wires. _(He struggles to attach one organic mass to another organic mass.) _Dammit. _(He rips a piece off one of the masses, and stares at it. He wiggles it, after it doesn't respond. It still doesn't respond. He makes a face.) _Back to square one, then. _(He goes back to messing with three-dimensional chemical diagrams on his iPad)_

_(CUT to Air Force One, flying over North Korea. Four figures hop out of it, two in Secret Service outfits. They release parachutes.)_

RALEIGH: What about weapons? _(RICKY grins.)_

RICKY: Got that covered. _(RICKY gestures upwards. The pilot drops two crates full of guns out of the plane.)_

RALEIGH: This is insane.

RICKY: Might as well try.

_(CUT to the PYONGYANG SHATTERDOME, 1000 HOURS. A number of KOREAN TECHNICIANS are working at various old-looking computers. One sees something on one of the screens, and calls a number on a landline phone.)_

KOREAN TECHNICIAN: _(in Korean) _Hello? We need the Dear Leader down here, we have paratroopers dropping over Taedong suburb.

_(CUT dramatically to an extremely blonde/busty/Russian woman in her late thirties. She's wearing a military uniform, and clearly belongs in it.)_

KIM VIKTORIYA SERAFINA: _(In Korean) _The Dear Leader is busy at the moment, so you will have to settle for me. Why didn't you stop them from entering our airspace?

KOREAN TECHNICIAN: _(in Korean) _First Lady Viktoriya!

KIM VIKTORIYA SERAFINA: _(In Korean) _Undoubtedly. Now justify yourself.

KOREAN TECHNICIAN: _(In Korean) _Well, um…I do what I can, but a lot of the computers are very old…

(VIKTORIYA pulls out another cellphone, and dials a number.)

KIM VIKTORIYA SERAFINA: _(In Korean) _You have failed me!I am dialing the number!

KOREAN TECHNICIAN: _(In Korean) _No! Please!

KIM VIKTORIYA SERAFINA: _(In Korean) _Kill him!

KOREAN TECHNICIAN: _(In Korean) _No! I can redeem myself! _(Two North Korean soldiers walk in and drag him outside.) _Noooooooo!

_(The other technicians look at the empty seat. The soldiers come back with a new technician, and sit him down. The other technicians go back to work. CUT to RALEIGH and pals, hitting the ground outside a small but urban North Korean town. In the distance, the north Korean capital of Pyongyang can be seen, the Ryugyong Hotel towering over its skyline.)_

RICKY: Okay, we're supposed to meet up with some help over at this bar. The bartender will take American dollars.

_(The party enters, the Secret Servicemen carrying the box of weapons. RICKY orders the drinks, and they sit at the bar.)_

RICKY: Six each, please.

RALEIGH: Is that some kind of code?

RICKY: Maybe. _(RALEIGH pays.)_

_(CUT to MAKO, again watching the news. I'm so sorry, Mako, but your role in the first half of this movie is going to be so boring. So, so boring. CUT to the news.)_

COLLEEN COX: Just when we thought the terrorists might open negotiations, it's appearing they've unveiled a brand new secret weapon, Tom. Are you seeing this- what appears to be one of our own Jaegers, now in a new terrorist getup?

TOM: I'm seeing it, Colleen, and I don't like it. On the plus side, those conspiracy theorists won't like this either! _(laughter)_ No, seriously! If the feds really had _kaiju _up their sleeve to release on their enemies in emergencies, why aren't they releasing them now? We're talking to leading theorist Millicent Price about this issue.

REPORTER_2: Thanks, Tom. Hello, I'm David Watlington out on the streets of New York with local skeptic Millicent Price.

MILLICENT PRICE: Thank you very much, David.

REPORTER_2: So, Millicent, I heard you like tinfoil hats. Ha-ha, that was a joke.

_(CUT "inside the television" to REPORTER COLLEEN COX, who has called up TOM on her cell phone.)_

COLLEEN COX: What the hell are you doing, Tom? I've got the story of my career out here! You could interview that crackpot anytime!

TOM: I had to break script, sweetheart. No one wants to hear that kind of stuff at a time like this.

COLLEEN COX: Tom, are you trying to _censor the news?_

TOM: Fuck. Okay, no, I'm not. You know what this is doing to people out there, right? People are scared right now. This is 9-11 times ten thousand.

COLLEEN COX: No it's not.

TOM: You weren't there. This is worse. Worse than maybe anything. There's a war on, and we're _losing on every side_, don't you get that? You think it's all going to blow over? It's not. This leaves scars, if we're lucky. People need some dumb story about a crackpot right now, and I'm going to give them that until someone shoots me or shoots the last fucking terrorist on American soil.

COLLEEN COX: But-

TOM: Before you say _another fucking thing_, remember that any _idealist shit _you learned in journalism school or what-the-fuck-ever _does not apply right now_. You and your crew are going to get out of DC, and you are going to cry into some fucking Ben & Jerry's, and nothing you know is going to leave this conversation, or you will be out of a job in the most newsworthy time in modern American history, are we clear? I need this to be over, forgotten, until someone important figures something out and we win. That's all I can do. Now get the fuck out of there. _(He hangs up.)_

COLLEEN COX: Prick.


	10. Chapter 10: War is Swell

CHAPTER 10

_(CUT to Washington DC, where the terrorist-garbed Jaeger shoots its giant Kalashnikov at American tanks. CUT to the side of the jaeger, where a painted inscription on its foot says "MADE IN DETROIT". It would actually look pretty American, too, if it wasn't trying to destroy America. CUT inside, where TAHIL and MR. KENADID pilot the jaeger.)_

TAHIL: What do you think we should call it?

MR. KENADID: I'd call it _Final Caliph._ It is appropriate, yes?

TAHIL: God's chosen king, destined to rule the earth.

MR. KENADID: Far greater than ourselves.

TAHIL: May it strike down those who oppose it…

MR. KENADID: And relinquish the world of profanity.

TAHIL: Amen.

MR. KENADID: Amen. _(They make a punching motion. CUT to outside: the FINAL CALIPH has punched a helicopter out of the sky. CUT back inside.)_

TAHIL: That's what I think of your country.

_(CUT to a sailor on one of the ships in a Chinese warfleet, off the coast of a large landmass. A massive monster is in the distance, moving closer.)_

BUTTERFACE _(in the distance) _Bletttth!

_(CUT inside one of the ships, where sailors are loading artillery pieces. Many of them are reminiscent of the energy and artillery cannons used by Jaegers in the first movie. These ain't your daddy's battleships.)_

COMMANDER: _(in Chinese) _Fire the artillery!

_(CUT back outside. Missiles and energy blasts launch towards the kaiju, which scrambles like a lizard towards the ships fearlessly.)_

BUTTERFACE: Blettttthhhh!

_(CUT back to the sailor, who is staring at the creature fearfully.)_

_(CUT to SARAH, HUI, and the SOLDIERS, watching the commencing battle from the top of the now-shattered Manila Shatterdome.)_

HUI: What are they _doing?_

SARAH: _(looking through the binoculars) _Yeah, what's their angle?

VERGARA: I bet they want to destroy the Kaiju and take the credit for themselves.

HUI: They'll probably want to arrest us afterwards, too.

SARAH: Those _pricks. _

_(CUT to BUTTERFACE, who, moving at full speed, nears the battleships. It's crossed the distance in a few moments, at most. CUT to the decks of one of the ships. The sailor looks up at this voraciously faceless motherfucker who's sprung out of some kind of Freudian wet dream and scrambles below decks, like a child hiding under the covers. CUT to a full view of the battleship; it fires again, almost protectively. CUT to BUTTERFACE; the creature, noticeably blind, screeches a chorus of agony and trots towards the battleship.)_

BUTTERFACE: Blatttthhhhhhh!

_(CUT away. The monster grabs both ends of the battleship with its mouths, and impales the center. This weighs down its horn, and the gigantic steel battleship, still impaled by the kaiju collapses into the water with a tremendous spash. The thick metal plates that hold the warship together are shredded like tissue paper as the kaiju rips its horn upward, out of the sinking battleship; one realizes how little six feet of steel means to a monster this huge._

_CUT to the largest of the Chinese ships, which almost looks like a jaeger in warship form. CUT inside it to see one of the EASTERN BUSINESSMEN in military garb, commanding the fighting. These guys are clearly renaissance in their pervasion of Chinese politics.)_

EB4: _(in Mandarin) _It's distracted! Fire the broadside cannons!

SAILOR: _(in Mandarin) _But our comrades are out there!

EB4: _(in Mandarin) _They're already dead, soldier! Now fire, or so will we!

_(CUT outside. Dozens of cannon fire energy blasts at the momentarily distracted Kaiju. Many also fire from the other direction.)_

BUTTERFACE: Blatatctth! _(Bleeding holes have been ripped though its body, but they are small.) Bratttatatcttatch!_ _(It submerges, almost gracefully. CUT to SARAH. She takes down her binoculars.)_

SARAH: That's weird. Where did it go?

_(CUT back inside the massive battleship.)_

EB4: _(in Mandarin) _It's gone! What's the radar say?

SAILOR: _(in Mandarin)_ It doesn't say anything.

EB4: _(in Mandarin)_ What? What's going on?

SAILOR: _(in Mandarin)_ There's no signature! I don't know, sir!

EB4: _(in Mandarin) _How do you lose something forty stories tall!?

SAILOR: _(in Mandarin) _I don't think it wants to be found!

EB4: _(in Mandarin) _Shit. _(He pauses.) _There's nothing we can do about that. _(He pauses again.) _If anyone asks, it ran away. Move into the harbor, we have work to do.

_(CUT back to SARAH)_

SARAH: It's gone. They're coming into the harbor.

VERGARA: Well then.

HUI: _(grinning)_ How many bombs have we got?

_(BZZZT: A video begins to play. An ANNOUNCER speaks to a cheering crowd of people representing every country.)_

ANNOUNCER: Welcome to beautiful Korea!

_(Everyone cheers. CUT to two animated children, a boy and a girl, working on machinery)_

ANNOUNCER: While the world has fallen to the monsters, we have stood tall, and fought for freedom!

_(CUT to the children's finished creation; a mighty kaiju that dwarfs their chibi stature by perhaps fifteen times over. It rises, and punches two monsters as they rise out of the sea.)_

ANNOUNCER: But the world grows dark once more, and people have grown frivolous and wasteful in the meantime.

_(CUT to the children again; the boy is listening to music on what appears to be a Walkman, while the girl is reading a book with a cross on the cover. They look up, as if to say "Who, me?")_

ANNOUNCER: Yes, I'm talking to you! You, watching this, right now! Are _you_ doing enough?

_(The children nod vigorously)_

ANNOUNCER: You, little boy! What have you done for the motherland today!

_(The chibi child thinks, and makes a little thought bubble. It shows everything he as done today, with a small analog clock in the bottom corner of the imagined day._

_8:00: woke up- the sun has been up for quite a while outside the window. It has a sad face, because the little boy is very lazy._

_9:00: ate a pile of oatmeal that towered high above his head_

_10:00: at school, he neglects his studies_

_11:00: on the playground, he says curse words with his friends)_

ANNOUNCER: Do you understand what you take from the Dear Leader when you do these things?

_(A picture flashes above the children's heads, of the Dear Leader Kim Jong-Un next to a picture of First Lady KIM VIKTORIYA SERAFINA. The picture is the same size, but noticeably zoomed in on her face and chest. The children look up, and respectfully nod to the camera.)_

ANNOUNCER: What have _you_ done for the motherland today?

_(Zoom out to see that it's a television in RICKY and RALEIGH's bar. RALEIGH downs a drink.)_

RALEIGH: That's my sixth.

RICKY: Awesome.

BARTENDER: _(noticing that RICKY has finished.) _Viva la revolución!

_(A crowd bursts in, waving North Korean flags and small arms.)_

CROWD: Viva la revolución!

RALEIGH: I was not expecting it to be like this.

SECRET SERVICE GUY: This is very weird.

RICKY: Don't worry guys. It's all totally part of the plan. _(He opens the box of weapons) _You guys want guns? Take a gun! Everybody gets a gun!

NORTH KOREAN GUY IN BUSINESS SUIT: Thanks very much!

RICKY: You're welcome! We're going to arm these guys.

_(RALEIGH looks out the window. The number of revolutionaries seems to be growing as people gain interest.)_

RICKY: And now we just follow them to Pyongyang. I'm a genius, I know.

RALEIGH: _(picking up a gun.) _Do...do these shoot acid lasers?

RICKY: You said I could just take the secretest ones.

RALEIGH: I...I just had no idea that was possible.

_(CUT to KIM VIKTORIYA SERAFINA, in Pyongyang, in front of monitors displaying many of the EASTERN BUSINESSMEN.) _

VIKTORIYA: _(in Mandarin) _I've received word of foreign incursions onto my husband's soil. We request assistance before they rabble-rouse the public.

EB2: May any insurrection be crushed.


End file.
